November 19, 2021
One of the two Iranian-Americans charged in the university admissions scandal that erupted more than two years ago has now been sentenced to six weeks in jail, a fine of $20,000, restitution of $8,414 and 250 hours of community service. It was among the lighter sentences.
The Iranian-American is Homayoun Zadeh, 60, an associate professor of dentistry at the University of Southern California (USC). He pleaded guilty in July to filing a false tax return in connection with the sweeping college admissions scandal.
He had paid $100,000 to obtain admission for his daughter to the University of Southern California and then deducted the payments from his taxes as a donation to charity.
His sentence was modest considering the fine and jail time given other defendants. However, Zadeh was also fired by USC and effectively drummed out of his profession. Zadeh was the only university professor caught paying bribes for the admission of a child.
Zadeh was among 57 wealthy parents, athletic coaches and others arrested in March 2019 in the case dubbed “Operation Varsity Blues.” The scheme, led by an admissions consultant, Rick Singer, involved rigging test scores and paying off sports coaches to get students into top universities across the country.
One other Iranian-American was swept up in the scandal. He is Ali Khosroshahin, a former head coach of women’s soccer at the University of Southern California, the same university where Zadeh taught and paid a bribe to get his daughter in. Apparently, the two men did not know each other.
Khosroshahin was on the other side of the scandal—receiving bribes to admit unqualified students.
Khosroshahin pleaded guilty in 2019 to conspiracy to commit racketeering for accepting bribes by saying women who applied to the school to play on the soccer team were qualified soccer players. He also agreed to cooperate with the government in its investigation of the scandal. He has not yet been sentenced. Prosecutors have recommended that he be sentenced to jail time “at the low end of the guidelines sentencing range.”
Zadeh was accused of agreeing to pay $100,000 to help his daughter get into USC as a lacrosse recruit even though she didn’t play the sport. Prosecutors say Zadeh deducted the payments he made to Singer’s bogus charitable foundation from his taxes as a charitable gift even though he knew the payments were designed to facilitate his daughter’s admission to the school.
Under Zadeh’s plea deal, prosecutors agreed to dismiss more serious charges, including conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery and money laundering conspiracy.
Of those thus far sentenced, two received no jail time, 10 got shorter jail sentences than Zadeh and 19 got longer sentences, with the longest being nine months.
His fine of $20,000 was among the smallest. Only four have been fined less, while the others have all been fined more, with 11 fined $200,000 or more. The largest fine was $750,000.
More than 30 parents have pleaded guilty in the case, including TV actresses Felicity Huffman, and Lori Loughlin and Loughlin’s fashion designer husband, Mossimo Giannulli.